Jonathan Igbal, the managing editor of Cross River Watch, an online platform, has been beaten up, handcuffed and taken by security agents to an unknown destination in Calabar, Cross River State.
Janarhan, who is also an activist, was before the protest being trailed by security personnel for his outburst and insisting on the protest.
It was gathered by our correspondent that he was taken by security personnel alongside other activists who engaged in a peaceful protest early Thursday morning to an undisclosed destination.
However, some activists were seen around the popular Mary Slessor Roundabout in Calabar where a handful of them had gathered to mark the first day of the 10-day planned protest against alleged bad governance.
According to the report, names of other activists arrested were not immediately known. Monitoring the protest, Jonathaan Igbal had posted a video in the morning that showed that the surrounding roads to the Mary Slessor Roundabout had been deserted.
Reacting, Barrister James Ibor, a human rights activist, said the arrest and torture of the activists and journalists were condemnable and reprehensible, and alleged that the security agents who tortured the journalist came in four hilux vehicles and SUVs, heavily armed. “We challenged the authorities to produce any evidence that Igbal and others were violent,” he said.
“I strongly suspect that the security agents are those attached to the state governor, Senator Bassey Otu. But we know that Governor Otu, being a people centric leader, cannot allow his agents to be this brutal.
“This is very sad. It is a disappointment and we call on Governor Otu to order the release of the journalists and activists whom I strongly believe are in government custody”, Ibor said.
Generally, the first day of the protest was peaceful and devoid of violence as witnessed during the 2020 protest. As most citizens of the state shunned the protest and were seen going about their businesses.
